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Ward 2 Councilmember Paul Cunningham

On Monday, October 8, 2018, at approximately 10 p.m., eastbound and westbound traffic on Broadway will shift to the north side of the roadway between Houghton and Harrison roads. Since the start of the project on September 17, 2018, crews have been salvaging landscaping and grading the north shoulder area of Broadway to install a temporary travel lane for this traffic shift. Shifting traffic to the north side of Broadway will allow crews to begin the excavation work to install underground drainage structures and new waterlines from Houghton Road to Harrison Road.

It was a relatively quiet council meeting on Tuesday, but we had a number of updates during study session on some important issues.

We got an update from Environmental Services about the city’s solar power initiative. I’ve written here numerous times about last year’s rate case involving Tucson Electric Power and how frustrated I am with their getting rid of net metering and thus the ability of many home and business owners to install solar power.

We’ve gotten complaints from several of the residents at Far Horizons trailer park south of our office. They have been without gas service for nearly two months.

It’s been a learning experience for both me and my staff about what the city’s responsibilities are in this area. We have, however, educated ourselves on the unique circumstances that locations like Far Horizons have in their interactions with utility companies.

Tucson Fire units rescued a person from the Pantano Wash near Kenyon Drive after a single call was made to 911 reporting someone clinging to a tree in the wash. The initial call made to 911 reported two people stuck in the wash, clinging to a tree but the caller hung up and did not answer on call back. A Swift Water Response was dispatched to the area, including crews from the technical rescue team.

Finally, the day we have been waiting for: work on the dilapidated stretch of Broadway between Camino Seco and Houghton will start on Monday.

Many of you have noticed that there have been crews from the various utilities for a few months. They were moving their lines in preparation for the road work. There are always scheduling issues with this sort of work, and that’s what led to many of the delays.

When I walked into the council chamber on Wednesday night, the room was fuller than I had expected. For a moment, I tried to think if there was a particularly controversial item on the agenda that had attracted all that attention.

It was something much better: it was members of the Tucson-Pima County Women’s Commission there to accept a proclamation for Women in Government Day.

As the people are the only legitimate fountain of power, and it is from them that the constitutional charter, under which the several branches of government hold their power, is derived, it seems strictly consonant to the republican theory to recur to the same original authority ... whenever it may be necessary to enlarge, diminish, or new-model the powers of government. – James Madison

The Arizona Symphonic Winds, established in 1986, is an all-volunteer community concert band performing a variety of music for all ages including overtures, light classics, marches, Broadway show tunes and popular music. Bring lawn chairs, blankets, and a picnic basket and enjoy an evening of entertainment for the whole family. Shuttle service is available from the Big Lots shopping center – northwest corner of Tanque Verde and Sabino Canyon Roads. All concerts are free to the public.

My staff and I have been getting ready for our ribbon cutting at Jesse Owens Park this weekend. As you know from last week’s newsletter, $2 million was spent on park improvements and we will be showcasing them on Saturday at 10 am at the playground at the west side of the park. Donna Williams Prather, Jesse Owens’s granddaughter, will be there and we will have refreshments available.

Climate change is real and affecting our home. Hear how to put the brakes on climate change and learn about ways to deal with a hotter future. Meet students who are taking action and arm yourself with information.

Governor Doug Ducey has ordered that flags at all state office buildings be lowered to half-staff from sunrise until sunset Wednesday, August 22 in honor of Chief Warrant Officer 3 Taylor J. Galvin, an Arizona native, who passed away on Monday from injuries he received when his helicopter crashed in Sinjar, Iraq. Flags will also be lowered on the day of internment, which has not been set.

“Our only hope is that those who frequent Jesse Owens Park will look beyond the cleats and see the man who, in spite of untold humiliating experiences, dedicated his life to the furtherance of the well-being of all mankind.” - Tucson resident H. A. Ryan, a letter to the Arizona Daily Star, April 6, 1980